Courageous, creative Jewish and
Palestinian Israeli parents have been dreaming.

They have created
three pioneer Arab-Jewish public schools in the tradition of the first, Neve Shalom~Wahat al-Salam (Oasis of Peace).
Their brave educational step into their shared
future is called Hand-in-Hand, on the Web at:http://handinhandk12.org/

The newest school, Gesher al Ha-Wadi -- Bridge over the Wadi
-- opened its gates on September 1, 2004.
Part of its uniqueness is that it is located in
the Arab village, "a revolution." A story about it have been published by Search for
Common Ground in the Middle East, on the Web at:http://www.commongroundnews.org/article.php?mode=8&id=188

And you must see the compelling online
streaming video about these students, teachers, and parents -- a taste of
the documentary being completed by noted film-making brothers, Tomer and Barak
Heymann ( BarakBoy@barak-online.net ), in need of a bit more funding, on the
Web at:http://iraweiss.net/images/Gesher%20al%20HaWadi.wmv

Now
read below about the first of the Hand-in-Hand schools.This is what the future looks like . . . today. Be part of it, wherever you live.--
L&L

Nestled in the lush, mountainous Galilee region of northern Israel, a school
working to a radical and experimental curriculum is quietly changing the
dynamic between Arab and Jewish neighbours.

At the Galil elementary school, past the
chain-link fences and security guard, about 170 students from the Jewish area
of Misgav and the neighbouring Arab towns of Sakhnin and Shaab share everything
during their school day. Established in 1997, it was the first mixed school
in Israel to host fully integrated classrooms teaching in both Arabic and
Hebrew.
The Hand-in-Hand enterprise, of which
the Galil school is a part, runs three schools. Other branches are in Jerusalem
and in the Arab village of Kfar Kara, in Wadi Ara. Arab citizens of Israel make up 20% of the
population, but the schooling system has traditionally remained rigorously
segregated, with separate languages and curricula for Jewish and Arab
students.

Ideals

The theme of integration is scrupulously
reflected in the school's staff. The school has two co-principals, one Arab
and one Jewish, and the same is true of the classes, each of which is "team-taught"
by an Arab and Jewish teacher.
"We're a very ideological school," says Noa
Zuk, a compact and tenacious woman who is one of the principals at the Galil
school.
But she adds that they try to stay as down-to-earth as
possible - even if, as her Arab counterpart Kamal Abul Younis stresses, working
with an Israeli co-principal is highly unusual.
Seated in her office, tucked away among a network of
trailers on the school grounds, Ms Zuk is realistic.
"We're not going to fix the world's
problems," she says.
"We're not here to judge the world. We are
just trying to show that it's possible to live together, even if you think a
little differently."

Two narratives

The school has to navigate virgin waters in
Israeli education, addressing delicate issues such as drastically different
views of the same historical events. "The situation here is very
complicated," concedes Amin Khalaf who co-founded the Hand-in-Hand
project. "There are two narratives." Israel's Independence Day, celebrated by Jews as a
joyous occasion, is known among Palestinians as al-Naqba, or, "the
catastrophe".
Mr Khalaf says that rather than sidestep controversial
topics, teachers, parents and students address them head on.
"Our belief is to put everything on the table and
deal with it," he says.
Last month, following the death of veteran Palestinian
leader Yasser Arafat, every class devoted an hour of discussion to the event.
"You can imagine it was difficult," explains
Mr Khalaf. "While Arab children have grown up with the image of Arafat as
a leader, for many Jews he was a terrorist."

Shaky Arabic

On parent-teacher day at the Galil school and the children huddle in
nervous, giggling bunches while their parents lounge in the school's brightly
decorated common area waiting to meet with teachers.

"When they get out of here,
they will realise that the world is much more complicated."

Rania Khalil

Teacher

As they flit by, it's impossible
to tell the Arab from the Jewish students.
On the walls, colourful charts of the Hebrew and
Arabic alphabet are posted alongside drawings of doves and stick-figure
children holding hands.
Shaky Arabic lettering may betray a Jewish hand, but
the works are painstakingly bilingual and multicultural.
Sahar Kasoum, a smartly-dressed young mother from
Sakhnin, says that it's important that her children are fluent in Hebrew.
"We want them to be able to speak in Hebrew and
not be ashamed that they don't speak the language," she says.
Leaning against the door casually, Tsafrir Pikes is
waiting for his younger brother. He attended the school until the fourth grade,
but moved to another school this year because of special requirements. He
remembers his old school fondly.
"It's different in every way," he says.
"Here the teachers know Arabic. We talked in Arabic and we met Arabs.
"If you don't know Arabic, it's like you don't
know the love of the world," he adds thoughtfully.
Ms Zuk, standing nearby, smiles. "I didn't even
prep him to say that," she says.

Language Barrier

"Only when you really live with
someone, day after day, can you leave aside the stigmas," says Kahal
Bin Osri, who teaches the sixth grade.
The bilingual mission of the school, she says, is
crucial to mutual understanding. "Language is so much more than just
language," she says. "It's your culture, your emotions, your
home." Lessons regularly switch from Hebrew to Arabic, with
reading materials and discussions fluctuating unpredictably between languages. The
children are enthusiastic, though the Jewish students are more clumsy with
Arabic, for lack of practice.
Rania Khalil, Bin Osri's Arab counterpart, admits that
the children are unusually cloistered.
"When they get out of here, they will realise
that the world is much more complicated," she says.